Your Blackberry Doesn't Bake Cookies
by Kari Dunn Saratovsky on 14 Apr 2009
Don’t tell anyone, but I’ve titled this post the name of the book my mom says she’s going to write one day. But since I’ve lived through about 30 years of listening to the great titles of the wonderfully inspirational books my mom was going to write, I don’t think I’m blowing anything here by sharing with you what she would have included.
By way of background, my mom is the consummate volunteer – and has been for as long as I’ve known her. Growing up I loved when she’d volunteer to chaperone field trips; by middle school I kind of wished she wasn’t the advisor for my youth group; and these days I’m inspired by her selfless service in the Indianapolis Jewish Community and particularly by her work with the senior citizens at the JCC.
Last week my mom called me in the middle of the day and her voice was filled with a mix of emotions. She told me that 175 people had registered to attend the Passover seder that she was coordinating for her seniors – and she couldn’t be more excited or terrified. Excited because of the incredible attendance and interest in the program – terrified because she didn’t know who was going to set the table, serve the food, or help her clean up afterward. My response was of course, "don’t worry mom – we’ll get you on facebook and you’ll have volunteers in no time!"
I said it half joking, but at the end of the day I wanted to prove to her that this social media space I find myself absorbed in and evangelizing for, is legit. As I helped my mom create a profile on facebook I realized that even though the statistics show the fastest growing demographic of facebook users are women 55+, like my mom -- they aren’t completely comfortable using facebook in the same way that my peers are. They are online because they want to see if they can catch a glimpse of who their children are dating, they want to reconnect with old high school friends, and they want to pretend to be “hip" and "in the know.”
But even that said, I don’t think we should underestimate what Boomers are doing on social networking sites. They are sharing links to their favorite causes, they are getting more comfortable donating money online, and they are helping spread the word about the things they care about both personally and professionally.
My mom’s book (should she ever write it…) would explain the countless reasons that all of the texting, friending and tweeting will never replace the good old fashioned face to face power of interpersonal relationships. And I would agree, but only to an extent. Because even if the tools themselves can’t make the cookies, they can help mobilize people to action.
My mom said that she needed to understand the value of social networking – because without that, she couldn’t get her head around why my first instinct was to have her join facebook. After all, when it came down to it, the 15 or so volunteers who arrived this morning to help with the lunch all received phone calls from an organization called Council Connect that helps connect community members with opportunities to volunteer. (for the record they aren’t online or I’d link to their site here!)
I read a terrific post by Hildy Gottlieb a few weeks back as she explained to her mom, Grandma Rose, the world of Twitter in very practical terms. It was a wonderful exchange, and I encourage you to read it. In the meantime, here are a few of the ways I tried to answer my mom’s questions about the value of social networks to her work.
1. Boomers aren’t the luddites we (or even they) think they are: a new report from Forrester Research revealed that more than 60 percent of those in this generational group actively consume socially created content like blogs, videos, podcasts, and forums, and the percentage of those participating is on the rise.
2. Volunteers and donors increasingly prefer online channels. While there’s a lot of discussion targeting youth in online fundraising and mobilization efforts, the 50+ category is really the next huge opportunity for nonprofits – both in terms of dollars and manpower. As long as the ask is clear and easy, individuals are becoming more and more comfortable navigating online tools to take action.
3. Social Networks can attract non-traditional volunteers, those who may stumble into an opportunity they didn’t even know existed. You can also attract individuals with very specific skills like lawyers or accountants who could offer their professional skills.
4. Social networks can help create a feeling of community. Social media guru Chris Brogan predicts that 2009 will see an increase in ‘velvet-rope’ social networks, which give like-minded people the opportunity to collaborate online and connect in a context that matters to them. Like gathering virtually to enjoy the Oscars or comment on an event like the State of the Union. Volunteers can share their experiences and recruit others to join them next time.
What are the best online resources for reaching Baby Boomers+? Have you successfully recruited adults online for your nonprofit organization? If so, please post a comment and tell my mom how you did it....together we can convince her!
Comments
I'm anxiously awaiting your help. Convince me, please!
By the way, the matza ball soup was delicious!
I love the post, Kari - and thanks for the link to the post about me and my mom!
Re: teaching Boomers, in my experience, peer learning is the most effective at teaching just about anything. If you can get people to teach each other, you will usually get farther faster. From that, perhaps non-Boomers can engage and work together with Boomers who already "get it," letting the Boomers guide the learning with their peer groups.
Now for the purpose not only of full disclosure, but to disprove some assumptions about Boomers and social media - I'm 51 years old. Yup - I'm one of them. And my peers who are using Social Media are mostly using it to connect and engage, to create change in the world. (Ok, and it's also very fun to be able to share stuff with my daughter and her friends!)
I guess "fewer assumptions" is one more reason why having peers teach each other may be the best way to go!
Again, thanks for a great post. (And if you can find a Blackberry that will do my dishes, please let me know!!!)
Hildy
http://HildyGottlieb.com
Thanks for the thoughtful reply Hildy - and for disproving some of the assumptions...although, based on conversations with my mom and her friends - I think you may border on the exception, not the norm. Wondering if you feel that way...?
And, to my mom (Linda Dunn) here's to what I assume is your first blog comment ever - may you be charting new territory!!
My Dad is a Boomer who recently retired and is looking for more ways to volunteer. For people like him who have not been involved with volunteering through religious groups or community organizations, social networks could be very valuable. He has been using websites like volunteermatch.org and encore.org to learn more about what is out there, but has found that there are not enough volunteer opportunities targeted to his demographic. So I think there is a great opportunity for your Mom to recruit new volunteers for her work! Check out my blog post about my Dad's search for an encore career:
http://proinspire.blogspot.com/2009/03/my-dads-journey-for-encore-career...
Hi Kari and company -- fantastic post! Just a personal anecdote to add to the mix ... my father (late 50s) just published his first book about change, and has been working on a blog, Twitter feed, and website to promote his personal brand. (http://patrocchi.com/)
He's a good example of the flip side, too -- he gives a lot of in-person presentations, meets with folks at diners, and has many other face-to-face interactions.
The result: quality relationships with a highly engaged audience, and a great deal of personal satisfaction from sharing and developing his ideas. P.S. He's very kind in giving his "smart, grown-up daughter" credit for getting him online, but it was his willingness to experiment and share that made it happen!
Keep up the great work here at Social Citizens!
Best,
Julia
http://www.juliarocchi.com
Julia and Monisha - thanks for sharing the stories about your dad's various ways of experimenting with social media.
It's quite exciting to see that after all of these years of their influencing us, we are reversing roles to help influence them!
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